Wake Up Call
by fbi-woman
Summary: It's what best friends are for. Post-finale fic, Caskett. A first attempt at writing Castle fanfiction.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Wake Up Call

Author: fbi-woman

Rating: K+ for now for language. May go up later.

Type: Castle, Caskett

Spoilers: Definitely watch the finale first. Or this makes absolutely no sense.

Disclaimer: Sadly they're not mine. If they were, last night would have gone quite differently lol.

Summary: It's what best friends are for.

A/N: So, after last night, I was pretty pissed, as I imagine a lot of people were lol and I decided that someone needed to tear Castle a new one for being so dense. And I thought one person in particular was the most likely to do so lol. This is my first Castle fic, so I hope it's okay, and I'm really nervous about how it'll go over lol.

* * *

Lanie glanced over at her best friend, whose head currently rested on the passenger window of her car with a blank expression across her face. If she was being honest with herself, she was worried about Kate. Not a word had been spoken since she climbed inside the car. Not that she had said much at all after Castle left.

They had all watched from the window as Castle walked away, leaving a shaken Beckett behind. It was like witnessing a plane crash; you see it going down in flames but it's too late to stop it and now you can only look on in horror.

As soon as he was out of sight, they all scrambled back to their seats before Kate caught them. After several minutes the door opened and she returned, donning a forced smile and trying unsuccessfully to restart the party. It quickly became painfully obvious that they knew. And she knew they knew. Silence descended on the room and lingered on for what felt like an eternity. Eventually they got up, one by one, offering an unnecessary excuse as they trickled out until it was just Kate and Lanie left.

Lanie had regarded her shell-shocked friend quietly while Kate continued to stare at her drink, just as she had done since she sat back down. Not actually drinking it, just staring, as if it had a fascinating story to tell. She knew Kate would have sat there all night if she let her.

Nervously she had cleared her throat. "Hey, why don't we go pick up some ice cream and have a movie night? It's been too long since our last movie marathon."

Kate never looked up. "I just want to be alone for a bit. You don't have to stay. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Aren't you off for the weekend?"

"Yeah, but I might as well come in since I've got no where else to be."

"That's it. We are officially having movie night, whether you like or not. You are going to get in the car, I'm going to stop at the store and get an obscene amount of strawberry ice cream, and then we're going to stay up all night eating junk and watching bad movies."

"I really don't –"

"I wasn't asking."

With a heavy sigh, Kate had reluctantly left the table and followed her to the car, where they now sat in stifling silence. She came to a stop in front of Kate's building and wasted no time opening the door and hauling her friend out of the car. When she didn't put up a fight, it worried Lanie even more. She had never seen Kate quite this listless. She had her work cut out for her if she wanted to get a play-by-play of the night's events.

It wasn't until the first movie ended and Lanie got up to change the DVD that Kate spoke. Her voice was so quiet that she scarcely heard it.

"I broke up with Tom."

She turned around, but Kate's eyes were focused on the half melted pile of ice cream she was poking at with her spoon. "When?"

"Tonight."

Oh boy. She opened her mouth to reply but Kate cut her off.

"You know, I knew this would happen. That's why I tried so hard to avoid going down that road. But I couldn't do it. You saw it. You told me, and I didn't believe you. Esposito saw it, and even the captain saw it. Everyone saw it but me, because didn't want to, and by the time I did, I was too late." For the first time since Castle left, Kate lifted her gaze to meet her friend's eyes. "I was going to tell him, Lanie. I was standing there, pouring my goddamn heart out in whatever stupid, screwed up way I can, and I'm seconds away from saying it, and then…" Her lower lip trembled and she quickly turned away.

"I'm so sorry." It came out as a whisper, though she didn't intend it to be.

"This is exactly what I was afraid of; that he would lose interest and go to someone else. "

"Honey, that's not what he's doing. You have to know that. He thinks you're with someone else, that he has to let go of you and move on."

She scoffed. "Sure, go ahead and defend him. You always do."

"What are you talking about? Kate, I'm _always_ on your side. I'm not trying to defend him, I'm just saying, I can see where he's coming from. Maybe you shouldn't write him off just yet." The minute the words fell from her lips, Kate snapped.

"I don't care where he's coming from! He shoved his way into my life and made me fall for him and then he left with his ex-wife! _That's_ what I care about. _That's_ all that matters now. He's with her, and I'm stupid for thinking we could work. I could have been happy, you know? Tom was a great guy, I liked him, we had a lot in common, but no, I threw it all away for Castle and just like that, he's gone."

Her reply was hesitant, afraid of fuelling the fire any further. "He'd come back in a heartbeat if you asked him to."

"I don't need any more pity. I got more than enough from the looks on all your faces tonight."

"Kate – "

"Don't, okay? Just don't!" She knew the unshed tears were spilling over and she was practically screaming now but her body had stopped listening to the rational part of her brain quite some time ago.

They faced off in silence for several minutes before Kate turned on her heel and retreated to her room, slamming the door behind her.

Lanie sighed heavily and cleared the forgotten bowls of ice cream before making up the couch for herself. She still had no intention of leaving her girl alone, no matter what. She was almost asleep when a faint sound caught her attention. She listened intently for a minute, beginning to doubt if she really heard anything at all, and then she heard it again. Her heart twisted painfully when she realized the sound was the muffled sobs of her best friend. Kate Beckett was not the kind of woman who cried over a man. But it wasn't just any man this time.

As quietly as she could, she tiptoed her way to Kate's room, opening the door slowly to find her curled up in bed, clutching a copy of Heat Wave to her chest. Without a word, Lanie gently sat down beside her, feeling the slight flinch of her body when she realized she was no longer alone. She made a meager attempt to suppress the onslaught of pent up emotion but the floodgates had been opened and she was rendered powerless. Lanie softly stroked her hair until sleep claimed her, silencing her tears though they continued to fall long afterwards.

.......................

When Lanie woke the next morning, the sun was already streaming through the windows and the clock read 11:03am. She couldn't remember the last time she slept this late. There was no sign of life in the apartment. No coffee had been made, there wasn't a television on, there was no running water in the shower. Nothing.

Kate's door was still ajar from when she'd slipped out late last night to go back to the couch.

She peered inside, "Kate?"

"Yeah?"

Stepping further into the room, she saw Kate lying on her back, staring up at the ceiling. She seemed to be doing that a lot: just staring aimlessly. "How long have you been awake?"

"Does it matter?"

"I guess not. You want some coffee?"

"No."

No coffee? Good lord writer boy had done a number on her. "How about breakfast? I can go pick something up if you want."

"I'm not hungry."

She sighed. "Alright, let me know if you change your mind."

Closing the door behind her, she trudged back to the couch. She hated seeing Kate this way, but short of time travel she hadn't a clue how to fix this. He had broken Kate Beckett.

She knew Kate would hate her for doing it, but she couldn't stop herself. She pulled out her cell phone and scrolled through her address book until she came across Castle's name. Though her conscience told her she should wait, that she shouldn't do this while she was upset, but nevertheless her finger pressed the call button.

* * *

TBC.

So, I'm really worried that Kate is gonna seem OOC, but she and I are a lot alike, and I've been in a similar situation, and this is a dramatically toned down version of what I went through lol so I hope she comes across okay. If you've had it happen to you, you probably know how awful and surreal it feels. Anyways, I hope I did okay. Caskett-ness is coming, I promise.

Review please?


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**: Okay, first thing's first: I'm absolutely FLOORED by the all the amazing reviews I've gotten on this so far! I never expected such a big response, so thank you SO MUCH to everyone who has reviewed and/or favourited. It means a lot to me.

Secondly, I'm SOOO SORRY it's taken me so long to get this chapter done. This is my first week off from horse shows since I started the fic and then I was finding it hard to jump back into how I was feeling post-finale night when I wrote this. Excuses, I know, but I feel I owe you at least a crappy explanation.

And lastly, I really hope this chapter is okay. Not confident with it AT ALL and debated a lot about where to cut it off. Hopefully you'll find it worth the wait, and my apologies if not.

* * *

The sudden shrill ring tone that pierced the air startled Castle awake, sending his laptop flying. With a quick grab, somewhat miraculous given his groggy state, he managed to catch it just before it met the hardwood floor. He looked around for a minute before recognizing his surroundings and remembering what had transpired the night before… or rather, what _hadn't_ transpired.

Everything was going well until after dinner. He was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to climb into his awaiting bed and sleep. Upon entering the room, however, he discovered that he was not the only one who wanted to be in his bed. There she sat, waiting for him with a wicked smile on her face, and he was coming to the uncomfortable realization that he hadn't been clear about the summer sleeping arrangements. Sure, he had been expecting some flirting, but they were exes for a reason and he wasn't intent on changing that. What had he been thinking when he invited her? Oh right, he was thinking about Beckett and Demming. He couldn't decide if sticking around and seeing them together would have been worse than the summer of imminent torture he had brought upon himself. Why did he think having his ex-wife around would make him feel _better_ about the Beckett/Demming situation?

So he had stood there, like a deer in the headlights, staring in silence until he heard his name. Stammering something about inspiration and writing, he turned and walked back out of the room, quickly made his way to his study, and locked himself inside. Sometime after hours of starting at the blinking cursor he must have fallen asleep.

The phone is his hand began to ring again, drawing his eye to the caller ID. Hmm… how unexpected.

"Dr. Parish, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Save it Castle. What the hell did you do?"

Uh oh. He wasn't even in the city and he was still in trouble. "Uhh… "

She sighed. "Okay, I'm gonna make this real easy for you: what did you say to Kate before you left?"

He wracked his brain, replaying their last conversation, but he was coming up empty. "Nothing, I just said it was a great year and I'll be back in the fall."

"And now how exactly did this conversation start?"

The tone of her voice was starting to make him nervous. "She said she's not the easiest person to get to know, and something about being hard to read, and that she wanted to say something."

Was she going to have to drag it out of him? How can he still not know where this is going? "Mhm. And what do you think that was?"

"To have a good summer?"

"I'm guessing that's what she _actually_ said. What do you think she wanted to say before little miss ex-wife showed up? And think about this before you answer Castle. I know you know her better than this. When Kate Beckett starts a conversation with that, what do you think she's trying to say?"

Now he was just confused. Clearly he had missed something. It all sounded perfectly innocent in his mind. They just said goodbye, right?

Lanie took his silence as her cue to give him a hint. God he was dense sometimes. "Would it help if I told you she broke up with Demming?" She was in deep now; Kate was going to be livid when she found out.

"She did?" He was stunned. Weren't they going away for the weekend?

"Mhm."

"When?"

"Right before she came and asked to see you in the hall."

Oh. OHHH. Oh no. The wheels in his mind were spinning furiously now. 'Don't always let on what I'm thinking', 'past year with you has been great', 'I'm just gonna say it', Gina, Hamptons for the summer… uh oh. The look on Kate's face. Oh God. Please don't let it be that.

"She wasn't gonna…" He didn't know how to finish that question, but it didn't seem to matter.

"Uh huh."

A spur of expletives ran though his head. This had to be the worst he had ever screwed up. It was actually incomprehensible to him, how exactly he could have missed something _that big_. He would ask himself what he was thinking, but it was obvious he hadn't been thinking at all. Everything he wanted was standing right there, in his reach, and he had walked away. And with Gina nonetheless. Kate must really hate him now. Hell, he hated himself right now. What he wouldn't give for a time machine.

"Can I talk to her?" he asked quietly, swallowing hard.

"Castle, she's barely talking to me, I really don't think she's gonna want to talk to you."

"Can you ask her? Please, Lanie?"

"I don't even know if she's still awake."

He looked at his watch. "But it's 11:30 in the morning."

"I know."

A wave of guilt tore through his chest. "Is she okay?"

"She will be. Eventually." It came out colder than she meant it to, but she supposed he deserved it.

"What should I do?"

"I don't know."

He sighed. "I didn't mean to hurt her."

"I know. But you did."

"Maybe she's better off without me."

"Don't give me that crap Castle. You two are made for each other and the only people who don't know that is the two of you! So you better stop throwing yourself a pity party and figure out how the hell you're gonna fix this."

He sighed again. "You're right."

"I know."

"Thanks for telling me Lanie."

"Mhm."

"Hug her for me?"

"I will."

He ended the call and fought the urge to hurl his phone at the wall. God he was stupid. He'd already screwed up with her once, would she really give him a _third_ chance? She had been reluctant to give him a second one. But he knew he didn't really have a choice; he had to try and win her back. After all, it would be hard to make this situation any worse, even for him. They were so close, and he wouldn't be able to forgive himself if he didn't fight for them.

There was a knock, followed by a voice. "Rick?"

Oh crap. Shoving his phone his pocket and grabbing his laptop, he anxiously approached the door, opening it slowly.

"I thought you were never going to come out! How's the writing coming along?"

"Not so good actually. Gina, I don't think this is gonna work. I can't write here, and us being here together wasn't a good idea. I'm sorry, I know I'm the one who talked you into it, but you were right to say no. I'm going back home. You can stay if you want, but I have to go."

"Whoa, Rick what happened? Is this about last night?"

"No, it's something I did, and it can't wait."

There was a moment of quiet eye contact.

"It's her, isn't it? Your real life Nikki Heat?" It was more of a statement than a question.

"Yeah."

She sighed. "Alright, go on then. I need that book, so go do whatever it is you have to do to get writing. I'll find my own way back after the long weekend."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes Rick, just go."

He smiled tightly. "Thanks."

And with that he was bounding for the door. He faltered for a moment when he burst into the bright sunlight outside, but thankfully he had a pair of sunglasses in his car. He shoved his key into the ignition and was gone, leaving a trail of burning rubber in his driveway.

* * *

**A/N**: I noticed I seem to have a thing for italics and 'gonna' today... not sure what that was about. Forgive me for the wait? I'll try to get the next one out sooner. Sorry again for taking so long, I hope this was okay.


	3. Chapter 3

**PLEASE SEE EDITED A/N FOLLOWING THE CHAPTER**

**A/N**: So, I'm terrible and I take forever to update lol. Profuse apologies again for how long this took. In my defense, we had 3 weeks of horse shows in a row and I went to a 4th one out of the country during that time. So I was legitimately busy. I still should have started on this earlier though, so for that I'm sorry.

As always, thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed and favourited this story. I still can't get over how well my first attempt at a Castle fic is going over. Now, as a warning, POV is going to be jumping around a bit in this chap. I debated a lot about what direction to go with this chapter and I'm still not sure that I'm 100% happy with it, but I'm hoping you'll like it.

* * *

A knock at the door broke Lanie's mindless state of channel surfing. Aside from boring talk shows and sports games, she was discovering how truly little variety there was in weekend daytime television. Hauling herself up out of her comfy spot on the couch, she trudged over to the door and peered through the peephole, where she was met with the worried face of Richard Castle. Crap. When she said to fix it, she didn't mean come over _right this minute_ and fix it. This was _so_ not going to go well, and then she was going to get hell for inadvertently inviting him.

With a sigh, she swung open the door. "Castle, what are you doing here?"

"I brought food", he replied innocently, holding out a bag of Chinese takeout.

She was skeptical, but she had to give writer boy some credit: the promise of food sounded really good right now. Reluctantly she stepped aside and granted him entrance.

"If I learned anything from the one night I spent here," he continued, "it's that there is absolutely nothing edible in that fridge, and absolutely nothing period in the cupboards."

That much was certainly true. She was starving but she didn't trust any of the suspicious looking takeout containers in the fridge. God only knew how long they had been there, so she gratefully accepted the bag from Castle and returned to her spot on the couch.

"Can't argue with you there. Thanks, Castle."

"So… where is she?"

She looked up at him warily. "In her room."

He paused momentarily, his voice hesitant when he spoke. "Can I talk to her?"

"I don't know if that's a good idea right now; she's barely talking to me and I didn't do anything."

"You said to fix it."

Living with two women, she thought he'd have a better idea of how women work. "I didn't mean to come riding in on your white horse in a couple hours and profess your love to her!"

"Who says I was going to do that?"

She raised an eyebrow.

"Okay fine, maybe I was. What do you suggest I do instead then?"

"I honestly don't know Castle. Believe me, I wish I did. I hate seeing her like this and you know I've always been pulling for you guys, but I really don't know."

He raked his hand through his hair anxiously, dropping into the seat beside her. "I didn't even know there was anything left to screw up, and yet I still managed to screw it up."

"I tried to make the argument that you didn't know, but she didn't want to hear it."

"No, she's right. It is my fault. I only asked Gina to come for the summer because I didn't want to stay and see her with Demming. It was dumb and immature, and I wish more than anything that I hadn't done it. I should have just planned to go alone with my stupid wounded pride and finish the book on my own. Then we never would have been interrupted, and none of this would have happened."

"You're not psychic Castle, you couldn't have known she'd come around."

"Yeah but it's my fault I was a jerk when she did."

They were silent for a minute before he jumped up off the couch.

"I have to talk to her."

"If that's what you really want to do, I won't stop you, but I'm going on the record saying this is a bad idea."

"No, Gina was a bad idea. This is not a bad idea… maybe not a great idea, but certainly not the worst I've had lately."

She just shook her head and watched him disappear into the hallway.

* * *

Rick hesitantly knocked on the bedroom door, fiddling with his hands while he waited for a response. He felt weird not bringing anything with him. Normally he would have accompanied an apology of this magnitude with flowers, but after walking into the florist's shop he decided it was probably best if he didn't give her anything she could throw at him. Unable to think of a piece offering that he wouldn't mind having thrown at him, he had come empty handed. With the exception of Lanie's food of course.

Having received no answer, he knocked again, but he was still met with only silence. With a sweaty palm, he reached out and gently turned the knob, nudging the door open. She was laying on the bed, her back to him.

"Kate?" he asked softly.

She spun around instantly, shoving something behind her, but not quickly enough for him to miss the words "HEAT WAVE" disappearing under her pillow.

"What are you doing here?"

He couldn't pinpoint the look in her eyes, and that scared him. "I came to see you."

"I thought you went to the Hamptons."

"I did."

"Then why are you here?"

"Like I said, I came to see you."

"I'm sure Gina was happy about that", she said coolly.

"She understood."

"How did you know I'd be here?"

Uh oh. "I, uh, talked to Lanie."

"You called her?"

"No."

Her voice was beginning to rise. "She called you?"

"She thought I should know a few missing details about the other day."

"Like?"

"Like how you broke up with Demming… and what you were really going to tell me before Gina showed up."

Her jaw dropped and her face flushed with both embarrassment and anger. "Well, that was not her information to share, so I'd appreciate it if you forgot what she said."

"Why didn't you tell me you broke up with him?"

"I didn't have the chance!" she snapped. "In case you forgot, your ex-wife showed up a minute into the conversation and happily informed me that _she_ was going with you to the Hamptons! What the hell am I supposed to say after that? You think I'm supposed to tell you I broke up with Tom because I want to go with you while she's standing right there and all my friends are listening through the door? Oh that wouldn't be awkward or humiliating at all, to be rejected in front of a crowd."

"Kate, I would never reject you."

"That's kind of hard to believe with another woman on your arm and you're going on about how you talked with her for hours just like old times, and now you're going away with her for the summer."

"I only asked her because you had plans and I thought that '_we_' were out of the question!"

"Well you didn't waste any time moving on, did you?"

He sighed. "Kate, I'm sorry, okay? I'm _so_ sorry. You have no idea how badly I wish I could go back and redo that day. But I can't. I'll do anything to make it up to you. I mean it, anything. I need you."

She glowered back at him. "You don't need me. You have enough research and you have plenty of other women to be your '_muse_'. Just get out Rick. Go back to the Hamptons and your ex-wife."

"Kate – "

"I don't want to hear it, Rick. I want you to leave now."

"Fine. If that's really what you want, I'll go."

The hurt was evident on his face, but it wasn't enough to make her change her mind. "That's what I want."

He nodded sadly and retreated to the door, glancing over his shoulder one last time before stepping out and closing it behind him. "Goodbye, Kate."

* * *

Lanie could hear muffled shouting through the walls and she listened carefully for the sound of objects being thrown, but thankfully she heard none of that. The voices disappeared with the click of a door closing, and Castle reappeared in the living room. He looked terrible, and he didn't even acknowledge her presence. He simply walked right by, out the front door, and was gone without a word. She knew this was a bad idea.

* * *

**A/N**: Okay, I know I've said this before lol, but I'm really going to try and update faster. I actually have the next chapter planned out, which is half the battle, so it shouldn't take me as long. I also have 2 weeks off from horse shows, which is immensely helpful. Just as a heads up, the next chapter will likely be the last. We will also be moving up to M, which I'm always very nervous about btw. I'm not sure if I'll move the actual story to M or just leave it where it is and put a warning at the beginning, so make sure you check the M rated fics if you don't see it.

**EDIT:** I re-uploaded this chapter because I wanted to add a new A/N. I've had a REALLY lackluster response to this chapter and I'm not sure if it's because you guys aren't happy with it, or because it was so long since the last update, but I do have almost the entire next chapter written so I'm just wondering if anyone still wants it or if everyone's sort of bored with this fic now? I know it's angsty right now, and it will be for a little bit longer, but I promise it'll get better. And I'm trying to keep writing nonstop while I have another week off so the updates won't be so slow. The next chapter is no longer going to be the last one; there will likely be a 5th. That is, if you guys still want me to continue.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N**: So I was tremendously disappointed with the lack of response to the last chapter, not gonna lie. I had already started this chapter so you guys wouldn't have to wait so long for an update, but I'm not sure how many people are actually still interested in updates. I held off on posting this for a few days to see if more people would get caught up after the long weekend, but that didn't seem to be the case. I considered not posting it at all, but that wouldn't be fair to the few of you who are still reading, so I went ahead and finished it up. I really appreciate all of you didn't give up on this fic.

* * *

Lanie dutifully sat on her best friend's couch waiting for something to happen… for _anything_ to happen. She was bored out of her mind. It had been hours since Castle left and Kate had yet to leave her room. She'd knocked on the door not too long ago but hadn't received an answer. She'd tried calling Castle too; she still didn't know what either of them actually said, which made it difficult to figure out how she could help. But Castle hadn't answered either. She hoped he wasn't already on his way back to the Hamptons. She had called his cell as well, but it was turned off. So here she sat, alone, in someone else's apartment, pondering what to do about two infatuated people who were both hurt and stubborn as hell.

Suddenly a knock at the door punctured the silence and she jumped up to answer it, figuring Castle had returned. Instead, she was met by a deliveryman from a bistro up the street. It wasn't Castle, but apparently it was dinner sent by Castle. She noted that there was enough for two people, but doubted Kate would be joining her.

She had just returned from retrieving a plate and cutlery when there was another knock. Apparently writer boy had been busy since his departure. Again, she opened the door to reveal a deliveryman, this one brandishing a bouquet of white lilies with a small card tucked inside. Closing the door behind her, she sighed heavily. Now she had a delivery to make.

Every time she approached Kate's room, she had the distinct feeling of walking into a lion's den; she was never sure if she would be met with nothing or eaten alive. She was quite surprised it hadn't been the latter on her previous visit, since Castle's impromptu visit had surely outed her. Not that she was complaining. Silence wasn't exactly preferable, but it was better than suffering the wrath of Kate Beckett.

Hesitantly, she raised her arm and rapped lightly on the door. "Kate?"

No answer.

"There's food out here if you want any."

No answer. Maybe she was sleeping?

"Something else came for you too."

"I don't want it."

Okay, not asleep then. "I'll just leave it out here by the door then and you can come get it whenever you want."

No answer.

Shrugging, she gently laid the bouquet down and headed back to the living room. Upon returning to the couch, she turned the volume down on the TV and listened carefully. As much as Kate claimed to hate surprises, Lanie knew she would give in to curiosity. Almost on cue, she heard the door open, followed by the rustling of cellophane and the gentle click of the door closing again. She smiled to herself. It wasn't much, but at least she had gotten out of bed – that was progress. She just hoped Castle had chosen his words carefully on that card.

* * *

Kate retreated her to her bed, flowers in hand, and sat down on the edge of the mattress. Did she tell him she loved lilies? She didn't remember mentioning it. His depth of knowledge about her was both impressive and terrifying. How did he know things she didn't say? How could he know her so intimately when she fought so hard to keep him at arm's length? She really hoped he hadn't noticed the book on her bed when he came in. How pathetic it would be for him to find her crying over his book. He repeatedly made her life hell, yet she missed him when he wasn't there, and she was having a hard time staying mad at him. Maybe she shouldn't have kicked him out.

She knew she should really be mad at herself, not Castle. She couldn't expect him to wait around forever, and she had taken too long. He had every right to move on with someone else. And yet she was hurt and angry that he had. Sure, she was surprised it had happened so suddenly, but she had no claim over him and as Lanie had pointed out, he didn't even know she wanted him. She had been dating someone for Christ's sake, and she had just assumed he would be available. Maybe if she had taken him aside, told him anyways after Gina's appearance, maybe he would have dropped everything to be with her. A big part of her believed he would have. But she wouldn't know, because she didn't fight for him.

Setting the flowers aside, she extracted the little envelope nestled between them. For a minute she just looked at it, running her finger across her name in his handwriting. Finally she opened it, revealing a simple white card that was blank on one side, with a short messaged scrawled on the other:

_Don't hate me KB._

_ ~ Rick_

She sighed. She couldn't hate him. Even though there were times when she _really_ wanted to, she still couldn't hate him.

The way she saw it, she had two options at this point. One: she could continue to stew in her room all weekend, and then go back to work and pretend nothing happened. It was certainly the easier option, and the one she would normally choose. But then there was the second option: go over to his place and use the opportunity to salvage anything they might have. He did come back to see her after all. She could say what she never got to finish. She mulled over the pros and cons of each, but there was really no competition. If she felt this crappy after waiting too long _once_, she wasn't going to let the chance pass her by again.

With renewed resolve, she picked some clean clothes out of her closet and hopped in the shower.

* * *

Lanie did a double take when she heard the water turn on in the bathroom. Ten minutes later, the blow dryer turned on. Ten minutes after that Kate appeared, fully dressed, and handed her the flowers.

"Could you put these in water for me?" Without waiting for an answer, she pulled Lanie into a hug, "and thank you for staying… and for the phone call."

Stunned, she simply stood and watched as her friend grabbed a coat and breezed out the door. What the hell just happened? Wait – did Kate just THANK her for calling Castle? Somebody better give her some details, and soon.

* * *

Rick sat slouched in the leather chair in his office, a glass of scotch in his hand. As replayed the last 2 days in his mind, a small amount of anger began to simmer beneath the surface. He was mostly angry with himself, but he was a little mad at her too. How was he supposed to know she would change her mind at the last minute? As far as he knew, she was going away with Demming, so why would it matter if he went away with Gina? He didn't know he did anything wrong and he still came back to apologize, so he thought it was a little unfair that he was in the proverbial doghouse.

Vaguely he heard someone knocking on his front door and reluctantly he got up. He had to admit, he was a little curious who it was. No one knew he was home, so who would be coming over? He flipped the lock and swung the door open, quite stunned to see a nervous-looking Kate Beckett on the other side.

"Hi", her voice was soft, almost hesitant.

"Hi."

"Can I come in?"

"Are you sure you want to?"

She rolled her eyes. "No Castle, I decided to wait until after the cab ride over here to make up my mind."

He was tempted to make a snippy remark about the sarcasm, but decided against it. At least she was talking to him, so he stepped aside to let her through.

She made her way to the couch, sitting down quietly and staring intently at her hands. He settled into a nearby chair and watched her. Her furrowed brow told him she was struggling with what to say, but he didn't push her.

"I'm sorry I kicked you out." When he didn't speak, she continued. "I acted like what happened was intentional, and I know it wasn't. And I guess I'm more mad at myself than anything else, and I took it out on you."

"Why were you upset?"

"Castle, you know why I was upset. Lanie told you."

"I know. But I want to hear it from you."

She sighed. "Fine, I was upset because you left with her."

"Why?"

"Because it wasn't me, okay? Is that what you wanted to hear? Can you knock off the 'why' bit now?"

"Kate, do you know why I was leaving for the summer?" She bit her lip and he knew she didn't want to answer. "Because you know how you felt when you saw me leave with Gina? That's how I felt every time I saw you with Demming. Do you have any idea how hard it was to sit there and watch you slip through my fingers?"

"You think it wasn't hard for me to work up the courage to ask you to step out in the hallway with me? You think it wasn't hard for me to finally open up to you and be shot down by your ex-wife?" Her plan to remain calm and rational had clearly flown out the window.

"I didn't say that."

"That's what you think though, isn't it? You think I deserved it; get a taste of my own medicine, right?"

"No! I would never think you deserve hurt. And I never wanted to hurt you, and I wish I hadn't, but I'm not psychic, Kate. I may be able to tell a lot from watching you, but I'm not a mind reader."

"I know, and I know it's my own fault that I'm too late, but that doesn't make it any easier."

"Why do you think you're too late?"

She looked at him incredulously. "Are you seriously asking me that?"

"Yes."

"Because you left with her!"

"And I left her to come see you."

She fell silent for a minute; she hadn't thought about it like that before. "So… what does that mean… for us?"

"Is there an us?"

"I don't know… is there?"

"I would like there to be."

"Okay."

"So there's an us?"

She smiled. "Yeah, there's an us."

* * *

A/N: Okay, so this actually took a slightly different turn than I intended it to when I started it, so the chapter ended in a different place than I thought it would. This leaves two options:

1. I can continue with a more… 'romantic' chapter.

2. I can leave it here.

What do you guys want? I'll happily put the time into writing it but only if it's going to be read, so it's completely up to you. Reviews are love and GREATLY appreciated.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N**: I'm now en route to Kentucky for Pony Finals, and it's a 9-10 hour drive so I figured it was a good time to get writing. I was really conflicted about what to do with story, which is why it's taken me so long to update. I actually intended it to be like 2 or 3 chapters max and smutty, but somehow it ended up being longer and angsty. I was going to have the smutty ending happen now, but I know a lot of people were hoping I wouldn't put them in bed together so soon after they reconciled and I know a lot of people wanted this story to keep going. I'm not very good with the saga type thing; as I'm sure you've noticed, I have a hard time not getting distracted with other things and updating regularly :P. I also wanted to have this wrapped up before season 3 starts. So I came up with what I hope is a good compromise between what I wanted and what the majority of you seem to want. This will still be the last chapter, but it happens differently than I intended and it's very dialogue heavy. I hope I don't disappoint!

* * *

"_So there's an us?"_

"_Yeah, there's an us."_

Kate smiled to herself as she replayed in her mind the conversation they just had, only half listening to the ringing on the other end of the cell phone she held to her ear. Sometimes it scared her how quickly things could change, but she pushed that aside for the time being. She could worry later; right now, she just wanted to be happy for a while.

"Hello?"

"Hey Lanie."

"Girl, you better tell me what the hell is going on. You do realize you _thanked_ me for interfering with your love life, right?"

"I did. And I meant it."

"So you wanna tell me why you didn't bite my head off instead?"

She chuckled. "You were right."

"Can I get that on paper?" Lanie interjected.

"You want to hear the rest of it, or not?"

"Okay, okay. Continue."

"As I was saying, you were right. I was being unfair. I didn't want to see it from another perspective, and I didn't want to see how I was just as much at fault, if not more so."

"But now you do."

"I guess I thought I was the only one kicking myself over the whole thing."

"What changed your mind?"

"The card that came with the flowers. I wanted to sting back, and I did, and it didn't feel like I thought it would. We've both wasted enough time being hurt by each other, and it's always going to come back to this."

"So you guys made up?"

"I don't know that we're at forgive-and-forget, but we're getting there."

"And you're together?"

"Uh huh."

Lanie let out a squeal. "I'm so happy for you! You guys are good for each other, Kate."

"I'm starting to agree with you."

"Good. Because I'm right about that too."

She laughed. "Anyways, we're going out for dinner, so I wanted to give you the go ahead to go home."

"You're gonna make me wait until tomorrow to hear about your date?"

"Yep, sorry."

"I guess I can forgive you. But you owe me."

"Oh I know."

"Good. Now go have fun with your writer boy."

"Thanks Lanie."

"Anytime."

They disconnected and Kate headed back to Castle's living room.

"Ready to go?"

As much as she teased him about immaturity, she secretly loved when he got that look like a kid in a candy store. "All set."

* * *

They walked in comfortable silence to a little diner down the street, where they slipped into a corner booth at the back of the room. Rick sat down in front of her, a huge grin on his face.

"What?"

His smiled widened. "Nothing."

"What?"

"Nothing!"

She rolled her eyes.

"Maybe I just like the idea of being on a date with you."

"I don't recall anyone saying this was a date."

"Am I paying for dinner?"

"You never let me pay."

"And do I get to kiss you goodnight later?"

"Maybe… if behave yourself."

"See? It's clearly a date."

"You want me to say it, don't you?"

"I would like that, yes."

She sighed. "Okay Rick, it's a date." She had to laugh at the giddy look on his face.

The waiter arrived to take their order and again they lapsed into a comfortable silence until Kate spoke up.

"So are you going back to the Hamptons for the summer?"

He looked confused. "No."

"You were going there to write."

"Oh, yeah."

"But now you're not."

"No."

"You don't have to stay here for me."

"I know."

"Okay. As long as you know."

"I think I'm still going to take a break from the precinct though. Just until I finish Naked Heat. I'm already in the doghouse for missing my deadline."

"I'm still not thrilled about that title. Oh and for the record? When you do come back, this – " she gestured between them, "has to stay outside of work."

"I know. We play by your rules… since I don't really have any."

She shook her head. "What am I gonna do with you?"

"Anything you want." He gave her a wicked grin.

"That's not what I meant."

"I know."

* * *

As they left the restaurant he cautiously took her hand, secretly thrilled when she let him.

"Do you want to come back over for a movie?"

"Sure. As long as I get to pick the movie." There was no hesitation in her response.

"I can live with that."

They arrived at his building and he held open the door for her, following close behind as they moved towards the elevator. The doors parted instantly then slid closed behind them, sealing them in solitude for the brief ride. In moments they were at his front door and stepping across the threshold.

"The DVD collection is in the cabinet below the TV if you want to make your pick, and I'll grab the glasses and wine."

"Sounds good."

"Red or white?"

"Red."

He returned a minute later, full glasses and uncorked bottle in hand, to find her selection had been made and the DVD menu was up on the screen.

"Sleepless in Seattle?"

"What? It's good."

He said nothing.

"It is!"

"You and Alexis have disturbingly similar taste."

"You mean _good_ taste?"

"If that's what you want to call it."

She smacked his arm lightly in response to his cheeky grin. After handing her a glass, he pressed play and tentatively put his arm around her.

Sensing his nerves, she turned to face him. "I don't bite, Rick."

He couldn't help himself. "What if I want you to?"

"That's really more of a second date move."

"Do I get a second date?"

"We'll see."

They were only 10 minutes into the movie when Rick spoke again.

"Kate?"

"Yeah?"

"I really want to kiss you right now."

"Okay."

"Okay? Is that a yes?"

She smiled at his excitement. "You didn't ask me anything."

"Can I kiss you?"

"Yes."

"And you won't threaten to kill me afterwards?"

"I can't make any promises."

"Good enough."

Her eyes closed as he leaned in and brushed his thumb across her cheek. Their lips met gently; a brief, feather-light caress followed by a second, more demanding one. The third and fourth grew hungrier still. On the fifth she opened her mouth to him and subsequently lost count.

The next time she looked over at the screen, the credits were scrolling by, the top few buttons of his shirt were undone, and one of his hands had slipped under hers. She reluctantly pulled away to look him in the eyes.

"It's late, I should go."

"Stay."

She shook her head.

"No funny business, I promise."

"I'm not sleeping in jeans."

"I'm sure Alexis has something that will fit you."

"I don't know, Rick."

"Please? I'll be good, really." His tone changed then. "I thought I'd lost you. I just want to hold you a little longer."

She sighed. Why did he have to be so sweet sometimes?

"And you have tomorrow off because of the long weekend, so you don't have to get up early for work."

He had her there. Not to mention the thought of her empty apartment seemed rather uninviting compared to the notion of being warm in his arms.

"Fine, but just this once. Don't get used to it."

"I can't make any promises."

She just rolled her eyes and laughed softly. He was trouble, and she loved it.

* * *

**A/N**: As I finish this, I am now on the drive home from Kentucky lol. I meant to have it done and posted by now, but Pony Finals took up a lot more time than I expected. One of the ponies actually inspired the last line though, so I suppose it was for the best lol. Anyways, I hope this ending isn't too disappointing for anyone, and I want to thank all of you for sticking with me through my sporadic updates and writers' block. Fingers crossed for Casketty season 3. Much love, K.

-END-


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